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.IOIIAN F. S. BRANTI'I, OF 1WASIIINGrTON, DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, ASSIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO THE INTERNATIONAL SIVEEPING MACHINE OOMPANY.

STREET-SWEEPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 552,888, dated January 14, 1896.

I Application filed October 28,1892. Serial No..450,234. (No model.)

T0 a/ZZ whom it iii/ay con/cern,.-Y v location of the angular guards. Fig. llis an 5o Be it known that I, JOHAN F. S. BRANTH, a elevation, on an enlarged scale, showing the subject of the King of Sweden and Norway, device for causing the action of the slat in residing at lVa-shington, District of Columpassing over the accumulated dirt in the 5 bia, have invented certain new and useful Imtrunk.

proyements in Street Sweeping Machines; The machine consists of a frame or body A 5 5 andIdo declarethe following to beafull, clear, mounted upon ground-wheels B B, located and exact description of the invention, such slightly in rear of the center of the machine as will enable others skilled in the art to which and carried by a shaft l), which is supported To it appertains to make and use the same, refin bearings h" D mounted on the frame. The

crcnce being had to the accompanying drawforward end of the machine supported by a 6o ings, and to the letters of reference marked bracket a which rests upon and is pivoted to thereon, which form a part of this specicaa trolley B", to which the draft mechanism is tion. attached. 15 My invention relates to street-sweeping ma- As will be seen by reference to Figs. l ehines,adaptedto be operated byhorse-power, and 2, the body A of the machine consists of 6 5 of the form in which a frame or easing is three parts-a semicircular broom-shield A' mounted upon ground-n-'heels geared to drive located at the rear and supported rigidly from a rotary brush mounted within the frame or the frame of the machine by brackets d d" de- :o casing, such brush being adapted to deliver pending therefrom, an inclined trunk or body the dirt or dust to an elevator which carries it Awhich, commencing at the forward end of 7o forward to a 'removable or stationary receptaf the broom-shield extends forward and upward cle; and it consists in the method of hanging and contains an elevating apparatus C, and the brush in relation to the driving-gear and a depending chamber or cage A3 above which the surfaces to be operated upon by means of the elevator-trunk tcrminates,which chamber which stretch of the driving-chain is eompencarries preferably one or more removable 7 5 sated for, in the special construction of the l `drawers or dirt-boxes A", which are so conbrush by means of which wear in the sections structed as to be readily removed for the purcoinposing the saine is taken up, and the secpose of Vemptying' the contained dirt. do tions kept always in the same relatiif'e posi- Vithin the semicircular shield is mounted tion as regards the working surface, in the the brush D, carried upon a iixed spindle d, So construction of the inclined elevator which the ends of which project through slots formed receives the dirt from the brush, in the conin the sides of the shield and are secured in struction of the inclined hinged apron and sliding blocks E E, carried in depending 3 5 guards for receiving the dirt and preventing' frames F F, in which they are mounted to its return to the street, and in other details, slide vertically, and in which they are sus- 8 5 all of which will be more fully described by tained by means of links ff, attached to the reference to the drawings accompanying this upper ends of the frames. The links are specification, in which-. connected with angle-arms g g, mounted 4o Figure l is a side elevation from the right upon a rock-shaft Gr, extending across and or gear side of the machine; Fig. 2, a central mounted in suitable bearings upon the frame. 9o longitudinal section; Figs. 3, 4, and 5, details The movement of this rock-shaft is controlled illustratingthe construction and operation of by a rod attached at its forward end to a the elevator; Figs. (3 and 7, details of the locking-lever H, located conveniently to a hanger and bearing for the brush-shaft; Fig. driving-seat mounted upon the frame, and S, a longitudinal section of the brush and retained by a sector-plate and latch of any 9 5 bearings; Fig. 9, a cross-section of the brush well-known form. on line 9 S), Fig. 8. Fig. 10 isasectional plan The depending links F F are pivoted at on line l() 10 of Fig. 2, showing the form and their upper forward corners f fto the sides of the machine and the swinging motion thus given to the broom and its bearings is con trolled by means of adjustable eyebolts f2 f2 pivotedto the lower rear corners of the frame, said eye-bolts passing through brackets f3 f 3, secured to the frame, and being secured therein bylock-nuts f* f4. As a result of this construction the broom-shaft and broom are capable of a double motion, one up and down in relation to the surface on which the brush operates, permitting the raising of the broom from its operative position for transportation, and one back and forth in relation to the gearing which rotates the` brush, by means of which stretch in the chain may be taken up.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 8 and i), it will be seen that the brush consists of a series of sections i mounted between movable heads I I, said heads being recessed to receive the ends of the sections, and the recesses are beveled or inclined'at their inner angles, as shown at t', and the sections correspondingly beveled in order that the brushsections maybe forced outward by the pressure of the heads I I. The heads I I are mounted on a hollow shaft J, and secured from rotation thereon by any suitable means which will admit of their movement in a longitudinal direction, preferably by means of a keyway i2, in which are mounted one or more set-screws t3. One end of the shaft .I projects beyond the shield inside the depending frame and carries a sprocket-pinion .12, and is sustained upon the broom-spindle by means of annular bearingsjof Babbitt metal carried within the ends of the hollow shaft. In order to control the longitudinal movement of the heads I I, I mount upon the hollow shaft at or near its center an annular split ring K, securely held upon the same, and connect the heads to this ring by means of rods l; 7c passing through the heads and held by nuts L 7a secured on their projecting` threaded ends. It will be seen that by turning these nuts the heads may be caused to approach each other and the sections of the brush securely heldin place-there being suficient space between the sections for the insertion of a wreneh*or the position of the rods may be reversed and the threaded ends caused to project outside the hubs or heads, it' desired, the tightening action being the same in either case.

The brush in its rotation delivers the dirt upon an inclined pivoted apron L, mounted on bearings Z l carried by the frame, and carrying at each end an inclined guard M between which the brush-sections are slightly compressed as the brush revolves. These guards consist of triangular pieces mounted upon the apron with their apex facing the brush and their base at the upper end of the apron next the elevating mechanism, the result of this construction being that the opening to which the dirt and dust is delivered is less in width than the effective surface of the brush, and that dust and dirt which falls back toward the rotating brush will come within such surface and be returned once more to the elevating mechanism, and the space between the ends of the broom and the sides of the casing are closed in such manner that no dirt can escape outside the guards between them and the casing, the said guards presenting an angular face to the ends of the brush-sections by which the sections are compressed, and a flat surface at the end of the inclined hinged apron in substantially dustproof proximity to the sides of the casin g. The

edge of the apron consists of a iexible serrated strip of rubber II, the ends or points of the same being protected by metal clips fn, this construction and the pivoting of the apron being adopted to allow large obstructions to pass under the same without liability to injury. From the apron the dirt is carried upward and forward to the receptacle by the mechanism illustrated more particularly in Figs. 3, 4, and 5, which consists of a series of flat blades O, hinged to a reciprocating frame i P, mounted on rollers j), which travel on raised tracks inside the trunk or casing. rlhe blades O are linked to each other by a series of rods o, and the upper one connected by a rod o to a crank-shaft Q, rotated through a sprocket-pinion q, connected by a suitable chain with the driving-gear. It will be seen that on the upstroke of the crank the boards comprising the elevator proper will take a position at right angles to the inclined surface of the trunk and carry the dirt forward and upward to the receptacle. In order that they may be lifted and passed over the material on the return stroke I provide the forward slat with an upwardly-projecting arm R, adapted to make contact with a roller 'r mounted upon a bracket r projecting downward into the trunk or chamber in such manner as to swing the slots bodily on their hinges and lift them over the dirt. The roller is hinged to the bracket in such manner that it swings out ward and allows the arm R to pass on the upstroke of the elevator, but is returned to its seat by a spring r2 and stands in the path of movement of the arm on the downstroke, thereby depressing the slats on their pivots.

The roller r is mounted on a horizontal shaft or spindle projecting laterally from the side of a collar mounted at the lower end of the bracket I on a vertical axis, the arrangement being such that the collar carrying the roller may turn with a swivelin g action on its vertical axis. Its turning movement in one direction is limited by stop-shoulders formed on the adjacent edges of the bracket and collar, and the latter is acted on by a spring r2 which tends to hold the collar with its roller projecting transversely of the trunk in the path of the arm R. On its upstroke this arm will contact with lthe roller, and the latter will yield and allow the arm to pass in its vertical position. On the return of the arm it will again contact with the roller, and the latter ybeing prevented from moving by the stop-shoulders, the arm will be depressed and rock the slats, carrying them over the dirt on the inclined trunk.

The driving mechanism consists of a gear J, mounted on one of the ground-wheels, an intermediate pinion t with an attached sprocketwheel U, and a sprocket-chain u', connecting the wheel U and the pinion on the broom-shaft.

In the use of these machines it is found that the dirt vis sometimes too firmly packed to be removed by the rotating brush. For the purpose of loosening such dirt I use a scraping device consisting of a rotary bar or shaft V, mounted in bearings o and controlled by a link-and-foot lever IV. This lever is held up normally by a spring mounted under the sa me. Upon the bar V are mount-ed spring scraperblades X. rlhe normal position of the scraper is out of contact with the pavement. IVhen the driver desires to use the same he depresses his foot-lever, and upon releasing the same the parts are raised from contact by the action of the spring.

In sweeping-machines there are two meth# ods of operating the rotary brush-one at slow speed with heavy pressure on the brush, and the other at high speed with comparatively light pressure. In my machine, which is constructed to work on the secon d plan, the pressure of the brush is regulated and the weight of the same counterbalanced by a weight Z carried by an arm s projecting from the rockshaft G, on the side opposite to the point of support of the brush. Should the operator desire to increase the pressure of the brush,

a movement of the weight toward the shaftA accomplishes this result, the weight being secured in the desired position by a set-screw or other similar means.

It will be noted that the link connecting the rock-shaft and its controlling-lever is slotted at its point of attachment to the lever, as shown at y. This is done in order to allow a certa-in amount of rise and fall of the brush to allow for irregularities in the surface on 'which it works.

Certain details embodied in this application having been described and claimed by me in an application now pending before the office, and dated October l5, 1892, Serial No. 414:8, 964, I desire to say that I do not claim such details in this application, except in so far as they enter into combination with other mechanisms not shown in such application.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is-` A l. In a street sweeping machine the combination of a brush shield, a rotating brush mounted therein, an upwardly inclined trunk a reciprocating frame, a series of blades mounted to swing thereon and means for reeiprocating the frame and rocking the blades, substantially as described.

2. In a street sweeping machine, the conibination with a rotating brush and a receptacle for receiving the dirt of an upwardly inclined receiving surface, a reciprocating frame, rails on which such frame moves, blades pivoted thereto, links connecting the blades, an uprising arm carried by one of the blades, an arm against which it makes contact and means whereby the blades are rocked and the frame reciprocated, as described.

3. In a street sweeping machine the coinbination of a casing provided with side walls, a rot-atin g brush mounted between said walls, an inclined hinged vertically movable apron, and c ngular guards iiXed to the upper side of said apron with their inner angular faces bearing against the broom sections, and their outer parallel faces in close contact with the sides of the casing; whereby the guards close the spaces between the ends of the brush and the sides of the casing and prevent the escape of dust and dirt to the outside.

4. In a street sweeping machine, the combination of a rotating brush, a casing covering the saine, an inclined trunk communieating therewith, an elevator mounted therein, an apron hinged within the casing and angular guards mounted thereon whose inner inclined faces bear against the brush sections and whose outer surfaces rest against the innersides of the casino.

5. In a street sweeping machine, the combination with a slotted brush shield, of pivoted frames carried thereby, means for controlling their swinging motion, blocks mounted to slide within the frames, means for controlling their movement and a broom spindle carried by the blocks, as described.

G. A rotating brush for street sweeping machines consisting of a hollow shaft carrying interior annular bearings adapted to rotate around a fixed spindle, recessed heads mounted to slide longitudinally on the shaft, an annular dish fixed between the heads, bolts connecting the heads to the disk, and a series of brush sections held between the recessed heads, substantially as described.

7. In a street sweeping machine, the combination with a slotted brush shield of pivoted frames carrie-d thereby, blocks mounted to slide in the frames, links connecting the blocks to a roclrsha-ft, and an adjustable counterbalance weight carried thereby, whereby the pressure of the brush may be regulated.

In testimony whereof Iafiii; my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JOHAN F. S. BRANTII. lVitnesses W. R. KENNEDY, E. S. HAWKS.

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